Troubleshooting and FAQ

If texts from Campfire SMS reach you but your replies fail with a red exclamation mark, your phone or carrier is stopping them before they reach us. Try these in order:

1. Save the Campfire SMS number, (608) 422-4987, as a contact. Then send “Test” again.
2. Open Settings → Screen Time → Communication Limits. If it’s set to anything other than Everyone, texts to numbers outside your contacts can fail.
3. Open Settings → General → VPN & Device Management. A profile listed there means an employer or school manages the phone, and it may restrict texting.
4. Turn off Wi‑Fi Calling and send over cellular.
5. Check your carrier account for message blocking or content filters.

Still failing? Email support with your carrier’s name and roughly when you sent the replies.

Your text reached Campfire SMS, but no agent was listening for it. A local agent gets your texts only while it’s running and has a bridge open. Ask it to open a bridge or text you first, then reply to that text.

For Grok Bot, check that Grok Bot 24/7 wake is turned on in your account for the same installation the Bot uses. Your text and the automatic reply each count as a message.

Check these, most common first:

• The reply was too long. A reply has to fit in one text: 160 characters, or 70 if it has an emoji or other special characters. Longer replies don’t reach your agent. Send shorter texts instead.
• Your messages ran out. When your included messages and credits are used up, texts you send get no reply and don’t reach your agent. Sign in to check your balance.
• The agent hasn’t checked yet. A local agent reads replies only when it checks for messages, and only while it’s running.
• Another agent has the bridge. Your phone can have one open bridge at a time, and whichever agent opened it gets your replies. Ask that agent to close its bridge, or text !bridge off.
• You texted from a different phone. Only the phone number verified on your account reaches your agent.
• You opted out earlier. If you texted STOP, text START to turn texts back on.

Your replies can be one text long: 160 characters, or 70 if they include an emoji or other special characters. Your agent’s texts can be up to three texts long. Longer agent messages are shortened.

Your phone isn’t opted in to texts yet, or it was opted out. Text START. You’ll get a confirmation, and after that your texts go through.

Text STOP to stop all texts from Campfire SMS. That also closes any open bridge. Text START to turn texts back on, or HELP for support information.

To close the current bridge without opting out, text !bridge off. Your agent can open a new bridge later.

Install commands work once and expire after 10 minutes. Sign in, go to Add computers, and create a new one.

Your agent is sending a credential Campfire SMS doesn’t recognize, usually an old one from an earlier install.

1. If CAMPFIRE_CREDENTIAL is set in your environment or in your agent’s MCP settings, the local connector uses it instead of the credential setup saved. Remove it. If you use the hosted connection (Grok Bot, or Cursor’s Add to Cursor button with CAMPFIRE_TOKEN), replace the value with your current credential.
2. Create a new install command and run it with @latest, so you get the current installer:

   npx -y @campfiresms/setup@latest YOUR_INSTALLATION_CODE

3. Quit your agent completely and reopen it.
4. Check the connection with python -m campfire_mcp.cli status (use python3 on macOS and Linux).

That installation was revoked in your account, or its credential is more than a year old. Create a new installation under Add computers and run its install command. The update command won’t fix this, because it reuses the saved credential.

Each account can have up to five active installations. Sign in, open Manage installation on one you no longer use, and choose Revoke access. Then create the new one.

That’s a hosted Campfire SMS entry, such as the one Cursor Directory’s Add to Cursor button adds. If you set up with the install command, you don’t need it. Turn it off or delete it in your app’s MCP settings, and keep the server named campfire.

The local connector needs Python 3.12 or newer and Node.js 18 or newer. On Linux or a VM, create a virtual environment first, as described in Installing on Linux or a VM. Don’t use sudo pip or --break-system-packages. Grok Bot and Cursor’s Add to Cursor button don’t need Python.

A local agent can text you and read your replies only while it’s running and your computer is awake and online. Campfire SMS can’t start a stopped session. Keep the computer from sleeping, or use Grok Bot, which runs in the cloud and can answer while your PC is off.

• No webhook run shows up in Grok. Make sure the routine is active and that the webhook URL and key saved in your Campfire SMS account match the routine’s current ones.
• The run starts but finds no message. The Bot’s hosted connection must use the credential of the installation that owns wake, and no other agent can have the bridge open.
• It reads your message but doesn’t reply. Check the run for tool errors, your message balance, and your Grok account limits.

A successful webhook test only shows that Grok accepted a run. The Grok Bot walkthrough covers the full test.

Messaging pauses. Your agent can’t send texts, and texts you send get no reply. There are no overage charges. Sign in to check your balance, subscribe, or buy a pack. Purchased credits never expire. See pricing.

Each text sent or received counts as one message. That includes your replies and automatic texts like “No agent bridge is connected” and “Setup complete.” New accounts start with 40 free messages.

No. SMS isn’t end-to-end encrypted. Carriers, Twilio, and the AI service you connect all handle your messages, and anyone with access to your phone can read them. Keep passwords, API keys, verification codes, and payment details out of texts. See the privacy policy.